Estelí

Town in northwest Nicaragua and administrative capital of the department of Estelí; population (1996 est) 65,000. A former Spanish settlement, it is situated in the west central highlands, at a height of 840 m/2,750 ft, on the Pan-American Highway, north of the Nicaraguan capital, Managua. Lying on the Estelí river, the town is a marketing centre for the surrounding agricultural area whose products include cotton, tobacco, sesame, and livestock. Industries include timber, tanning, and hat manufacture.

Estelí was badly damaged during the revolution of 1978-79, and some of the damage remains. The town is one of the strongest support bases for the Sandinistas, members of the Sandinist National Liberation Front, a Nicaraguan left-wing organization.

There are some prehistoric carved stone figures set in a park in the south of the town.